Monty Bennett’s name will not appear on the ballot for the Tarrant Regional Water District board of directors yet he remains a powerful backstage player whose influence could shape the direction of the district’s business for years to come.

Chris Brassard and Omar Diaz had apartments in mind when they built a 12-unit complex on May Street just south of West Magnolia Avenue on Fort Worth’s Near Southside. Then their leasing agent, Will Northern of Northern Realty Group, suggested they consider selling the units as condominiums.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal judge is set to decide whether to approve a plea agreement that calls for Halliburton Energy Services to pay a $200,000 fine for destroying evidence after BP's 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

At a hearing Thursday, U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo can either accept or reject the Houston-based company's deal with the Justice Department. If she accepts it, she must impose the agreed-upon sentence.

Halliburton was BP's cement contractor on the drilling rig that exploded in the Gulf, killing 11 workers.

Halliburton agreed in July to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of unauthorized destruction of evidence. The company also agreed to make a $55 million contribution to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, but that payment wasn't a condition of the deal.